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Quantitative assessment of manual and robotic microcannulation for eye surgery using new eye model
Shinichi Tanaka1, Kanako Harada1, Yoshiki Ida1
1Department of Mechanical Engineering, The University of Tokyo, Japan.
Background:
Microcannulation, a surgical procedure for the eye that requires drug injection into a 60-90 µm retinal vein, is difficult to perform manually. Robotic assistance has been proposed; however, its effectiveness in comparison to manual operation has not been quantified.
Methods:
An eye model has been developed to quantify the performance of manual and robotic microcannulation. The eye model, which is implemented with a force sensor and microchannels, also simulates the mechanical constraints of the instrument's movement. Ten subjects performed microcannulation using the model, with and without robotic assistance.
Results:
The results showed that the robotic assistance was useful for motion stability when the drug was injected, whereas its positioning accuracy offered no advantage.
Conclusions:
An eye model was used to quantitatively assess the robotic microcannulation performance in comparison to manual operation. This approach could be valid for a better evaluation of surgical robotic assistance.
